AN UPGRADE of Champions Way at Willowbank has been prioritised by Ipswich City Council, with funding to come from the Ti Tree Bioenergy funding program.
Deputy Mayor Nicole Jonic put a motion to last week’s Council meeting bringing forward the design and planning for an upgrade of Champions Way to further support the Ipswich Motorsport Precinct.
The Council voted unanimously in favour of prioritising the design and planning for an upgrade in the 2025-26 financial year, with capital works to be budgeted and commenced in the 2026-27 financial year.
Division 4 Councillor
David Martin seconded the motion, saying he believed the Ipswich Motorsport Precinct should be the premier racing precinct in the country, and Champions Way warranted being upgraded to a four-lane road.
The Council recently backed future sponsorship of the Supercars event to secure the series as an annual event for the city.
Division 1 Councillor Jacob Madsen said the precinct should attract support and investment from the State and Federal governments, with the number of national events and the impact on the local economy.
The 2002 approval of the Ti Tree Bioenergy facility off Champions Way included a requirement to provide ongoing, annual payments to be used for community and environmental improvements that offset the impacts of the waste disposal facility.
Cr Jonic said an average of 750 vehicles a day, peaking at 1500, used Champions Way – and 40 per cent of the vehicles were trucks.
“This heavy vehicle traffic has contributed to the degradation of Champions Way,” she said. “At present the road is in poor condition, which numerous surface faults, and it has gravel shoulders. It no longer adequately services the needs of the precinct or the community.”
Cr Jonic said that while resurfacing was planned for 2028-29, resurfacing alone would not be sufficient.
“A holistic reconstruction and upgrade is required,” she said. “Leaseholders in the Council-owned Ipswich Motorsports Precinct, which is accessed by Champions Way, have invested approximately $30 million in their facilities in recent years. In contrast, Council has made no significant capital investment in the precinct for many years.
“Given the direct and ongoing impact of Ti Tree’s operations on Champions Way, it is not reasonable that the full cost of reconstruction fall on the broader community. Allocating a proportion of the Ti Tree Bioenergy annual payment plan to this project will be a fair, transparent, and legally consistent use of those funds and deliver long-term benefit to the precinct and the community.”
